Since the day I opened Project Partners Design, I have always relied solely on word of mouth and referrals to get new business. I would much rather have a satisfied client sell their friends on my reputation for quality, service and professionalism than me having to go looking for someone who needs what I have to offer.

Given that mindset, I was thrilled to see one of my projects show up in Wood-Mode’s new publication, ‘Traditional Design for the 21st Century – A Perspective’. Hard copies will be available at the Kitchen and Bath Show or you can flip through a digital copy here. Please check out pages 16 and 17! 😉

Kitchen by Project Partners Design and Selby House Ltd. Cabinetry by Wood-Mode.

It is funny how the littlest of things can prompt a quest or start a project. Years ago, I won a black dishwasher but the house we lived in had an all-white, homeowner-installed kitchen. What to do with the dishwasher? I could have sold that dishwasher but it was better than the one we had AND there were loads of things that bugged me about our existing kitchen.

The previous homeowner had made all sorts of installation errors and, being a kitchen designer, I knew it. The dishwasher rubbed an arc in the plaster every time it was opened and closed. The cabinets were installed tight against the walls so the doors couldn’t open all the way…leaving dents in the walls from years of trying. The floor was added without planning for its thickness so all the appliances dropped down 3/4″ when they were pushed into place…making them very difficult to clean behind and leaving a gap below the countertop. The knobs on the doors were football-shaped so they spun and never stayed level. I could go on and on, but I am sure you can already understand why it was a no-brainer for me to decide to turn that free dishwasher into a full kitchen remodel!

Back in October, I stumbled across an interesting and beautiful photograph of a door posted by RedStuffDan. It was the little thing that started me down the path of trying to craft a similar door and structure out of clay in our ceramics studio. (Yes, when I am not creating beautiful full-sized kitchens, I like to create beautiful small-sized ceramics with my husband in our studio.)

I posted a few pictures of the work in progress on our art blog back then and promised to post the finished project when it was complete. Well, the home construction project is now finished. It was bisqued and stained in November and survived the cone 10 firing in December. By now, it is in move in condition!

Thanks again for your lovely photographs, Dan. That beautiful house from Damazan, France has now found a new home in California. I am even considering making another and laying the ground for the entire subdivision…just like in my day job! 😉

I thoroughly enjoy being a professional kitchen designer! It allows me to use my artistic skills to create beautiful designs and my analytical skills to make sure everything installs properly and functions flawlessly for my clients. The smile of a happy client and the ongoing referral to their friends and family is something that I find very rewarding.

One of the keys to being able to do the job effectively is to thoroughly understand the design of the appliances on the market. Such a solid understanding allows me to make sure I can design around them such that they function as intended and fit seamlessly into the kitchen design. As a way to stay current on appliance design, I often participate in programs sponsored by the various appliance manufacturers. As you might imagine, some of these can be quite dry but occasionally an opportunity comes along that I look forward to with great anticipation. Such was the case when my day job afforded me the opportunity to take a tour of the operations at the Sunset Publishing headquarters with the team from General Electric. There would be an opportunity to sample from the Sunset wine cellar, cook in the Sunset test kitchen, stroll through the Sunset test gardens and learn from the GE and Sunset teams. I wasn’t about to say ‘no’ to that!

For those of you that live (or have lived out west), you will know that Sunset magazine is a wonderful collection of all things great in the western states related to travel, home, garden, food and drink. It is a magazine that is right up my alley. It brings me wonderful articles about so many of things that I am interested in and about which I write in this blog and on my other blog – CatTail Creative. [Back when I lived in the Midwest, I thought the magazine was geared towards senior citizens. Boy, was I wrong!]

First Sunset Magazine Cover

I arrived at Sunset Publishing’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California a few minutes early so I used the time to talk to Amy Olmsted (associate publisher) about the roots of Sunset magazine. As it turns out, it was founded in 1898 as what we would now call the ‘in-flight magazine’ for the Southern Pacific Railroad’s train, the Sunset Limited, which ran from New Orleans to San Francisco. The Sunset magazine was available on board and covered topics that would generate interest in all the wonderful things to do and see once the traveler got to the western states. In the 1920’s, the magazine was purchased by Lawrence Lane, former executive with ‘Better Homes and Gardens’, who reformatted the publication into something more in line with the format we know and love today. Since 1990, Sunset has been part of the Time Warner family and is still going strong.

Once the GE program began, we took a tour of the grounds. The gardens are laid out by western region with the southernmost part of the garden housing the plants found in the southwestern states. As you walk north, the plants evolve to those found in the Pacific northwest. It makes for a very nice way to ‘stroll up the coast’ and allows the Sunset photographers to occasionally use the grounds for a regional photo shoot without having to travel outside of the Bay area for the appropriate flora. Very clever!

In the Sunset Test Garden

Also out on the grounds is the infamous Sunset test garden where they try out the plants that they feature in the magazine as well as the occasional egg-laying chicken or honey bee colony.

The headquarters office itself was architected by Cliff May. Widely known as the father of the California ranch-style houses, it is no surprise that he designed a ranch-style office building complete with courtyards and beams. It is magnificently done right down to the original drinking fountains that still function throughout the building. Quite impressively, virtually every office space has both a window and access to the outdoors. Compared to the cube farms found in so many of today’s office buildings, if you have to go to an office to work every day, this is a great office space from which to work.

It may come as no surprise that I found the test kitchen fascinating.

In the Sunset Test Kitchen

The food editor explained to us that all the recipes presented in Sunset go through testing in the test kitchen by serious home cooks, not professionals. The test kitchen has stations that allow all the recipes to be tested on both gas and electric equipment to make sure the recipes work regardless of what type of equipment we all have to work with at home. In order to accomplish this, the test kitchen is laid out with four mini-kitchens in the space with each mini-kitchen having all the necessary appliances needed to make any meal. From this description, you might expect the test kitchen to be a restaurant-grade sea of stainless steel but it isn’t. It is designed to be a home-like space that puts the home cooks at ease. Complete with warm wood cabinetry and clean lines, it is both functional and beautiful. I don’t know who the actual kitchen designer was who developed the space plan but kudos to whomever it was. The job was well done!

While in the test kitchen, I got the opportunity to put the goat cheese crumbles on the quail and brussels sprouts dish that the GE chefs demonstrated for us on the GE appliances found throughout the Sunset test kitchen. After enjoying that dish, we headed in small groups to the underground wine cellar for a chance to try some of this year’s Sunset Wine Competition winners with Wine Editor, Sara Schneider. [Imagine having a job where you have your own wine cellar at the office and wineries send you all sorts of bottles to sample. Not bad.] A glass of Benzinger’s 2010 Tribute was a perfect cap to a perfect program…as was the bottle of Au Bon Climat pinot noir that we each got to take home.

Thanks so much to GE, Sunset, Amy, Sara and the whole team who hosted us for a delightful visit. If you find yourself in the Menlo Park, California area, the Sunset gardens are open to the public for a self-guided walking tour. You won’t get the opportunity to cook in the test kitchen or drink in the wine cellar but the architecture of the headquarters and the stroll in the garden is worth the stop. You might want to bring your resume along as well. Who wouldn’t want to work in this delightful environment…and then you could cook in the test kitchen and drink in the wine cellar every work day. Sweet! 😉

Being degreed both as an engineer and an interior designer, one of the things I often tell clients about my work is that I focus on making everything I design both beautiful and functional. You can only imagine therefore how happy I was to see a kitchen pantry that I designed a few years back show up in today’s Houzz article, “Photoflip: 80 Pretty and Practical Pantries“. With over 7 million photos to choose from in their database, the fact that they selected one of my photos to be included in their collection of 80 examples makes me feel quite honored.

Kitchen that Includes the Pantry Featured on Houzz.com

Take your own flip through the article for some nice design ideas specific to pantries. The one from Project Partners Design is #56. In the actual kitchen that includes this pantry, it sits behind a full-height glass door so it had to keep up appearances with the rest of the kitchen. Designed in collaboration with the homeowner and Elizabeth Hill of Selby House Ltd, it has always been one of my personal favorites as well.

For the past sixteen years, I have had the pleasure of doing what is, for me, a dream job – designing and implementing beautiful and functional kitchens and baths. You might think I have seen it all but I can still say that each project brings something new.

On a recent photo shoot of a kitchen remodel completed earlier this year, I had the opportunity to look inside the cabinets to see how the homeowners were using the many convenience options that we designed into their new space. Now usually when I peak inside, it becomes very obvious why we put on doors and drawer heads…to hide the clutter! I avoid photographing any of these function-improving features because, well, even though they work well, they just don’t make for great photos. But in this case, every drawer was lined with shelf paper that coordinated beautifully with the materials we chose for the kitchen and every kitchen gadget was neatly arranged.

This isn’t a ‘show’ kitchen by any means; these people are gourmets and they love to cook – they just do it in a beautifully organized manner. It didn’t take long before I had asked permission to photograph inside the cabinets so you could see some of the key convenience options in use that make a well-designed kitchen function flawlessly.

Roll-Outs – In my opinion, this is probably the single-most important feature to put into a kitchen design. For any cabinet that isn’t all drawers, there should be adjustable roll-outs behind the doors. This provides access to every inch of storage in the cabinet. No more lost items that work their way to the back only to be found when you go to move. And, by being fully adjustable, they often work even better than drawers because you can position them to fit the size of your stuff. See how even the big stock pots can work well on a roll-out?

Double Waste – Ninety-five percent of all kitchens I design contain a double waste and ninety-nine percent of all homeowners put the trash in one and the recycling in the other. Occasionally though there is good reason to break that rule. Those other five percent use a single waste, or a trash compactor, or have a ktichen so close to another area where they put the recycling that the double waste isn’t necessary.

This kitchen has a single waste and a built-in compost receptacle by the main sink. Another double waste is in use by the prep sink for recycling and the dog food – a neat and easy way to handle the kibble and the bits.

In-Counter Compost Receptacle – While this may not be as in demand everywhere as it is here in northern California, I suspect it may just be a matter of time. The ease of being able to dump the kitchen scraps, the coffee grounds, the melted ice from a finished beverage glass, paper scraps and anything else that eventually goes out to the garden is tremendous. With a flush-mounted lid in the counter top, there is no more ugly or smelly compost bin to sit on counter or under the sink. In my own home, Keystone and I agree that, after the roll-outs, this may be the smartest feature we built-into our kitchen. It works great!

Knife Block – The big block that sat on-counter was quite the style years back but now it gets looked upon as just another bit of kitchen clutter we would rather hide from view. This is where the knife block in the drawer comes into play. All the blades are stored safely, are easily accessible and it doesn’t matter if your tools are a mélange of different makes, models and handle styles. With the counter top block, you had a large, one-time expenditure in a matching set. With a knife block in a drawer, you can acquire better tools by making your individual cutlery investments over time. Or doing like one friend does who receives one additional piece each year as a gift from Mom.

Spice Storage – Here we used a spice drawer where all the bottles sit angled in the drawer for easy access. This approach works well although it does require the use of a particular-sized spice bottle to properly fit in the drawer. Often I prefer to put spices on the back of a door so they are at eye level and the bottle size isn’t critical to making things fit. But, in this kitchen, you may have noticed the aluminum-edged glass doors that are flanking the hood. This precluded me from putting the spices on the doors so the drawer become the next best choice. Good spice storage is key because, with those little bottles, out of sight can quickly become out of mind.

Whether it is one of the five options highlighted here, a special mechanism that allows access to a blind corner or a shallow drawer that allows the use of drawer space under a cook top, there is usually a ‘convenience option’ available that makes good use of every inch of storage space in a well-designed kitchen. While it may seem like eliminating these options is an easy way to cut costs when faced with the sticker shock of your dream remodel, that is the last thing I would recommend. It is these very options that will determine how well your dream kitchen will function (or not) for years to come. Invest wisely, my friends. 😉

What is the single biggest mistake made in kitchen design? From my point of view, it isn’t going too trendy with the choice of materials or color. It isn’t using too big or too small of an island or mis-calculating the storage space or the countertop area required. It isn’t spending all of your budget on appliances such that there is nothing left to do the other important components of the design. While all of these can be poor decisions that I prefer to avoid, in my book, the single biggest faux pas is not designing the kitchen to be in keeping with the rest of the home.

You know it when you see it. You walk into a beautiful traditional home; possibly brick on the outside, shuttered windows, six-panel doors, hardwood floors, and crown in each room. It all flows wonderfully as you move from room to room and then you enter the kitchen. There before your eyes is an ultra-modern kitchen inspired by the latest in commercial, restaurant spaces. They spent a small fortune on the stainless appliances and the euro-cabinets and the glass tiles and the streamlined fixtures, but something is just not like the other rooms and not in a good way. It just doesn’t feel like it belongs with the rest of the home.

Now, I am not saying you can’t put modern elements in the kitchen of a traditional home nor am I saying that traditional elements can’t go in a contemporary dwelling. Absolutely it can be done but there needs to be some degree of transition to make it all work as a cohesive whole.

Several years ago, I worked with a client who understood this completely. I entered her home and she gave me a tour…ending with the kitchen. At which point she turned to me and said, “Which room here is not like the others?”. The obvious answer was the kitchen. She had remodeled and decorated every other room in the house with a comfortable, transitional vibe but the kitchen was still “builder traditional” – the arched-door cabinets with no trim details, no eye candy in the form of a nice backsplash, no attractive focal point (the white microwave is not my definition of pleasing to the eye), and the island achieved on the cheap by the builder simply installing an over-sized piece of stone atop a cabinet to yield an overhang and a knee space. It functions but that’s about all it has going for it.

By stealing about two feet of space from an office behind the kitchen, I rearranged this kitchen to function, make a statement and be consistent with the decor of the other rooms in the home. Now when you enter the room from the front of the house, the custom hood stands out and in a pleasing way! The touches of frosted glass lighten the look of the dark wood and add visual interest as your eye moves around the room. The wet bar hides beautifully behind the big doors with the circular handles yet seems to belong next to the large, circular wall art of the family room off to the right. And, while the kitchen certainly has a contemporary flavor, the use of crown and other traditional details allows it to work in a traditional home.

The result is that the kitchen now looks to be part of the design of the rest of the home rather than the odd man out. Quite a change from where we started!

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If you are interested in the selections and the names of the other trade partners on this job, refer to the project on my Houzz.com portfolio. Any of the details that I have on record are recorded there.

Generally, I am not a big fan of surprises. I am just too much of an organized planner to go with the flow unless it is part of my PLAN to go with the flow! 😉

Summer, 2014 Issue

Recently, though, a pleasant surprise showed up in the form of the latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publication, “Beautiful Kitchens & Baths”, summer 2014. The magazine arrived inside a white envelope from Meredith Publishing rather than just a loose issue in my mail box. I wasn’t at all sure why I was receiving this special issue but I am a sucker for a good kitchen and bath magazine so I started flipping through. When I got to page 92, it all became clear! There was a beautiful full-page photo of a master bathroom I designed for a Chicago-based client a few years back. Over the next six pages was a nice article complete with quotes and designer insights I had given the field editor shortly after we completed the job.

How nice of the publisher to send me a copy. Otherwise, I never would have known.

As my thank you to them, go pick up a copy for yourself. The issue is on newsstands through July 21st and is filled with great insights from many good designers. Or, here is a link to purchase a digital copy.

The article about 20 design trends that will stand the test of time is spot on in my opinion!

A couple of weekends ago, I excitedly looked forward to attending an Edible Art exhibit in Oakland, California. Before you make the same assumption that Keystone did, this show was not about art you can eat but rather art about things that are edible.

I read a local magazine entitled ‘Edible East Bay‘ and it always includes such beautiful drawings to accompany their food-related stories – stylized mushrooms in intricate watercolor detail, linoleum block prints of vegetables, pencil sketches of seeds and sprouts and the like. This show was promoted as an opportunity to meet the artists and see some of their work. In my mind’s eye, I expected a large show with lots of art to look at and perhaps even a chance to spot the perfect piece or two for a client’s kitchen.

When we pulled up in front of the venue and it was a small, one story office building, I began to suspect this event wasn’t going to be as I had anticipated. Unfortunately, the show was a lot smaller than I was envisioning and the art itself was on the small side too (postcards and 8 x 10’s) so I came away with nothing except dashed hopes.

Metalwork Sparrow by Gunter Reimnitz

This past weekend, at the last minute, we decided to pay a visit to the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show. I went with a mission of figuring out a few native plant options for our front garden and figured that anything else we learned would be gravy. You can probably already guess that I came away unsuccessful on my original mission however at this show I was pleasantly surprised to find wonderful, high-quality art from watercolorists, tile artists, fabric designers and more.

The garden chairs re-purposed from propane tanks in landscape architect Logan Sowers’ vignette were amazingly comfortable. They would make a quirky addition to any contemporary garden.

An interesting art piece in one of the urban garden vignettes was made from garden hose set in a pattern and lit from inside. What a clever idea!

A bonsai exhibit that displayed miniaturized coastal redwoods and live oaks also included a section sponsored by the California Suiseki Society displaying a small section of stones from their collection that will be on display in Oakland this June. I learned that Suiseki is the Japanese art of stone appreciation. I always appreciate a beautiful graining pattern, color or sparkle in a stone countertop or backsplash, but this art form looks at stones that have been shaped by water, weather and wind to evoke thoughts of mountains, lakes, waterfalls, animals and more. Fascinating!

Art from a Garden Hose

You just never know where you are going to find that next bit of inspiration. Even though I didn’t find that for which I went looking, this year’s San Francisco Flower and Garden Show was a gold mine of design inspiration for me. I can’t wait until next year’s show!

I scratched my head and wondered why one of my design photos would accompany an article about relocating and then I saw what they did. They used that photo that I blogged about a few months back that is my most-popular photo in my portfolio showing a happy chocolate lab hanging out in the combination dog’s room/laundry room that I designed for a client a few years back. The happy dog in his happy home went well with the writer’s advice about handling pets when relocating. I guess free publicity is free publicity so I’ll take it!

And next time I go to photograph a completed design, I think I’ll incorporate more pets and kids in the photos. That seems to appeal! 😉

It is always nice to open your email and find a message that makes a nice start to your day. Being a design professional, when I opened my email earlier this week and found this lovely note from Houzz.com, it certainly put a smile on my face!

“Hi Project Partners Design and congratulations,

We’re writing to let you know that you’ve been voted by the Houzz community as a winner of our Best of Houzz 2014 awards! Your work won in the Customer Satisfaction category, which is based on reviews you received on Houzz in 2013, as well as other factors related to your profile. We have already placed a “Best of Houzz 2014” winner badge on your Houzz profile page. Congratulations and thank you for being part of the Houzz community. “

Thank you, Houzz! I appreciate the positive feedback and am honored to be a winner along with so many other talented professionals in the design field. I was honored to receive a Best of Houzz award in 2013 and continue to be grateful to my happy clients for taking the time to write a review of their positive experiences working with me and my firm. I couldn’t do it without them!

Below is the press release that came with the email. If you would like to know more about Houzz, the press release explains what they do in their own words and provides the links to their site. Thanks again, Houzz.com!

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Best Of Houzz 2014 Award

Annual Survey and Analysis of 16 Million Monthly Users

Reveals Top-Rated Building, Remodeling and Design Professionals

[FREMONT, CA], February 4, 2014 – Project Partners Design of Fremont, CAhas been awarded “Best Of Houzz” by Houzz, the leading platform for home remodeling and design. The15-year-old kitchen and bath design firm operated by Theresa M Sterbis, AKBD, was chosen by the more than 16 million monthly users that comprise the Houzz community.

The Best Of Houzz award is given in two categories: Customer Satisfaction and Design. Customer Satisfaction honors are determined by a variety of factors, including the number and quality of client reviews a professional received in 2013. Design award winners’ work was the most popular among the more than 16 million monthly users on Houzz, known as “Houzzers,” who saved more than 230 million professional images of home interiors and exteriors to their personal ideabooks via the Houzz site, iPad/iPhoneapp and Androidapp. Winners will receive a “Best Of Houzz 2014” badge on their profiles, showing the Houzz community their commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz.

“Houzz provides homeowners with the most comprehensive view of home building, remodeling and design professionals, empowering them to find and hire the right professional to execute their vision,” said Liza Hausman, vice president of community for Houzz. “We’re delighted to recognizeTheresa M Sterbis ofProject Partners Designamong our “Best Of” professionals for customer satisfaction as judged by our community of homeowners and design enthusiasts who are actively remodeling and decorating their homes.”

With Houzz, homeowners can identify not only the top-rated professionals likeTheresa, but also those whose work matches their own aspirations for their home. Homeowners can also evaluate professionals by contacting them directly on the Houzz platform, asking questions about their work and reviewing their responses to questions from others in the Houzz community.